Thursday, June 11, 2015

U.S. Pacific Commander vows strong response to N.K. provocations

Hopefully the responses won't be the tepid ones that were too little, too late in response to Cheonan sinking and Y-P Do artillery attack. The only thing that might deter Kim Jong-un is decisive demonstration of strength.

We really have to get "WMD" right - word, message, and deed or as I like to think word, mind, and deed -the words mean nothing to the mind of the target audience unless they are connected to the right deeds that back up the words (just like the problem we have with ISIL - our ends ways disconnect - degrade and destroy ISIL does not compute in the minds of ISIL, Syrian "moderate" resistance, Iraq government and people, the international community, and the American public when it is not backed with the appropriate deeds - and the "deed" is contracting out the ways to inept proxy indigenous and host nation forces whose interests are not aligned with ours so that they cannot possibly achieve our ends). Sorry for the seeming rant across continents, theaters and threats - but I think there are similarities to how we should approach "WMD" - word, mind, and deed.

U.S. Pacific Commander vows strong response to N.K. provocations

The new head of the U.S. Pacific Command reaffirmed Wednesday stern responses to any provocations by the "dangerous and unpredictable" North Korea based upon the steadfast alliance with South Korea.

Adm. Harry Harris, chief of the U.S. Pacific Command, made the pledge during his visit to the South Korean Navy's 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, where he paid tribute to sailors killed in the North's deadly attack on the South Korean warship Cheonan.

On March 26, 2010, the 1,200-ton naval corvette sank in the Yellow Sea, killing 46 South Koreans. An international investigation found that Pyongyang had torpedoed the ship, though the belligerent regime has denied responsibility. The hull of the vessel is on display at the fleet's headquarters.

"I believe North Korea is dangerous, it's unpredictable, and it's led by the leader (Kim Jong-un) who is arrogant. I consider North Korea a rogue nation discredited by the entire world," Harris said, pointing out that Pyongyang has expressed its "willingness to use military provocations to achieve its national goals."

In a saber-rattling move against South Korea and the U.S., the North has continued to build up its asymmetric capabilities and launch provocative actions. Last month alone, the North carried out live-fire drills twice near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto inter-Korean maritime border in the Yellow Sea.

"So I have to tell you that the U.S. remains vigil in the face of North Korea's continued provocations and steadfast in our alliance's commitment to the ROK. It is no accident that the first country that I visited as the Pacific Command commander in the bilateral sense was Korea," he added, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea.

He assumed the command position of the U.S. Pacific Command in May 2015.

Stressing solid bilateral relations and friendship between Seoul and Washington, Harris also said the strong alliance will "allow us together to overcome provocations by North Korea."

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David S. Maxwell is a 30-year veteran of the US Army retiring as a Special
Forces Colonel with his final assignment serving on the military faculty
teaching national security at the National War College. He spent the majority
of his military service overseas with over twenty years in Asia, primarily in
Korea, Japan, and the Philippines leading organizations from the A-Team to the
Joint Special Operations Task Force level.

He
hails from Madison, Connecticut and is a 1980 graduate of Miami University in
Oxford, Ohio with a BA in Political Science and has Masters Degrees in Military
Arts and Science and National Security Studies from the U.S. Army Command and
General Staff College, the School of Advanced Military Studies, and the
National War College of the National Defense University. He received his
commission from the Officer Candidate School in 1981.

In addition, he is a fellow at the
Institute of Corean-American Studies (ICAS) and on the Board of Directors for the
Small Wars Journal, The International Council of Korean Studies (ICKS) and the
Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK). He is a Life Member of the
Special Forces Association and the National War College Alumni
Association.

He is currently studying in the
Doctorate of Liberal Studies program at Georgetown University and teaches SEST
604: Unconventional Warfare and Special Operations for Policy Makers and
Strategists.

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The purpose of this site is to share information on national security issues with anyone who has an interest in these topics. My focus is on National Security Issues of Policy and Strategy; Asia, with particular emphasis on Korea and China, as well as Special Warfare (Unconventional Warfare and Foreign Internal Defense) and Surgical Strike (Counterterrorism) and how they relate to US National Security.

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Thought for the Day

"By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest." - Confucius